


Chase It Away

by CadersSparklet, SineadRivka



Series: Nova Initia: Cracks in the Shell [4]
Category: Jurassic World (2015), Transformers - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-08
Updated: 2015-11-08
Packaged: 2018-04-30 14:13:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5166812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CadersSparklet/pseuds/CadersSparklet, https://archiveofourown.org/users/SineadRivka/pseuds/SineadRivka
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stepping back onto Isla Nublar was like willingly returning to sleep to face a nightmare. Every crack in the pavement along Main Street drove home to Claire that she had failed so many people, compromising herself and park safety for numbers. From the outside, Owen and Picard Rowling, who is acting park manager, can clearly see how many lives she saved. Neither wish to lose her to the maelstrom within her soul, and each find ways to help her find new ties to the present . . . and the future.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Chase It Away

**Author's Note:**

> Songs:  
> CadersSparklet: Rider on the Bonez -by- Diabolical Masquerade  
> SineadRivka: The Next Chapter Awaits -by- Rameses B

Her hands were tightly clasped together as she stared down at them, instead of their surroundings. The tension in her posture was glaringly obvious. The only comfort was that Owen was beside her driving the company jeep. She couldn't look up. This wasn't on her time. They'd had to come back here. To the root of her nightmares. Hell. The place it'd started. They were meeting a few others to see if the Indominus Rex's paddock could be converted into something new. 

She wanted it gone. Never wanted to step foot back here. Deep breath, slow release. She could do this. Owen was at full attention, eyes scanning the area for any threat that needed immediate action. She didn't need that reminder that he'd almost been killed here. Only his quick wits and skill had even saved him. She'd heard his debriefing. They'd had to meet with the board (company) and give their accounts. Owen had been highly opinionated but somehow had gotten his point across with careful words. 

Claire hadn't been so lucky. She'd been grilled by several people. As if this was somehow all her fault. She felt like it was. Maybe if she hadn't been focused on the numbers. Instead . . . lives had been lost. Human and dinosaurs alike. The Indominus Rex had been a killing machine. Something she'd had a hand in. Henry Wu had been given free reign, sure, but they'd never questioned it. It was always the results. The press conferences she could handle. The cleverly written lies she could read aloud. That was easy. She could give that carefully composed mask of professional business woman who was deeply sorry on behalf of the park for the losses incurred. The media had eaten it up. The accusations were clear and she'd even been threatened. Owen was a constant protective presence, scaring anyone off who got too loud and too close. He was her grounding wall when she couldn't handle the lies anymore and needed a shoulder for the truth. 

"They're waiting on us," Owen spoke quietly before lightly touching her shoulder. They were getting some odd looks from construction workers who didn't know what had happened. "Come on. One step at a time." He unfastened her seatbelt before getting out and moving around to open her door. "I'm right here. Anything has to get through me first." She nodded but still didn't move. She was staring at her hands until Owen moved a hand to tilt her face towards him. Her eyes flicked up to his, distressed. 

". . . help me . . ."

"Right here." Then he took her firmly by the arm and she was out of the vehicle. Door closed and they were moving forward. Owen kept a hand against her back, offering comfort and support. She was in a cream blouse and darker cream colored skirt. It reminded her too much of the first time they were there. She immediately noticed a new vehicle parked off to the side and an individual watching them from inside. 

"Who?"

"New head of security. Nice guy. Barry adores him," Owen said with a soft chuckle. "Azzara or something."

"You haven't met?" Her eyes went back to his, grateful for the banter. She was shocked. She had thought that Owen would have demanded to meet this man as soon as they had the chance to.

"I've been busy." And his hand suddenly slid down her back to lightly caress her ass before returning to its original spot. She kept a straight face.

"Sure you weren't just avoiding a chance to do actual work. I believe you're supposed to assist security in rechecking the restricted area."

"They have people for that. I'm a raptor guy. I do raptors," he stated and his voice dropped. "I do you and haven't received a complaint." She just barely managed to avoid hitting him in the arm as they reached the group of construction workers. The very air of this place seemed to reek of evil. Claire kept busy and only noticed later that Owen wasn't beside her. She glanced up from the plan laid out in front her and noticed that the overturned vehicle was being hooked to another to be dragged away. The truck that Owen had taken shelter from was still there.

He was crouched beside it, staring at the ground that still held traces of the vehicle fluid he'd coated himself in. She'd wondered why he'd smelled so strongly of it when he'd entered the control room to yell at her. He'd been positively livid and she had not been excused from that. She still had thought she had the right idea though. They'd just contain the asset . . . then Owen had almost been killed again when all of his raptors had turned on him. His body posture was tense and she knew he was reviewing the scenario in his head. 

She hadn't been the only one affected and she probably wasn't the only one with nightmares but Owen never spoke of it. She grabbed the top paper and headed over, looking for all intents and purposes like she was going to ask his opinion on something. She stopped behind him and he didn't move, eyes tracking something she couldn't see.

". . . I can still feel its breath," he said quietly and she tried to repress the shudder that tore through her. "If I close my eyes . . . I can still clearly see it." Now it was her turn to be strong. They'd be haunted by this monster for a while. 

". . . We survived." His head turned quickly and his eyes caught hers. Sharp. Brilliant. Beautiful. Intimidating. She stood firm in her words, reflecting her thoughts on the matters. The corners of his mouth quirked upwards into a smile.

"I could kiss you."

"You don't have to ask."

"What about them?" And he indicated the workers who were working. 

"Doubt they'd mind too awfully much." Owen moved quickly and his lips were against hers. Strong arms wrapped around her, pulling her close then suddenly she was dipped backwards from the force. A loud wolf-whistle than cheering broke through and Owen straightened with her, breaking the kiss but not letting her go. She laughed and shook her head at him. 

"I love you." 

Her eyes widened a fraction at his statement and his narrowed. She licked her lips nervously. They'd never said it before. 

". . . Owen." He slowly let her go and she knew she'd somehow messed that up as his actions were cutting her off from anything else. He took the paper from her. Suddenly all business. 

"Right. So if we are going to use this again I suggest finishing off the work already laid in place. I'll go talk with the labs and see what they want in there next. Probably not a hybrid but it could be used for some of the littler ones to rebuild population." He strode off, long steps eating the ground and leaving her there. She wrapped her arms around herself and sighed. 

". . . I love you too. More than you'll ever realize." She murmured quietly and then it was back to business. They still had a lot of work to do to get the park back up and running. It'd been absolutely great before the Indominus. They could still recover from this . . . Her and Owen? She really wasn't sure. The sex was great. Owen was a perfect person but . . . Claire had her faults still. It was just a matter of time before Owen figured them all out. She straightened her spine, and walked back to the make-shift planning board to readdress the situation of replacing the glass the Indominus had broken. 

Much later she registered Owen's presence behind her. She didn't have to look to know he had his unreadable expression on his face. The guy she was currently talking to kept looking behind her and seemed like he wanted nothing more than to vanish. Did Owen even know he was making that face? She continued calmly, making certain that she and the worker were on the same page. Eventually she had to let him go and he was gone quickly. The others had left for the day. She studiously ignored Owen as she began putting away the paperwork. Last one safely secured and she spoke up. 

"Help you with anything, Mr. Grady?" She asked, keeping her tone professional and leveled. Inside she was a nervous wreck. Had she messed up? She just hadn't been ready. Owen said nothing and she turned to see if he'd even heard. He was giving her a hurt look. 

"Really? I'm not even Owen anymore?" His arms were crossed defensive against his broad chest. She quirked an eyebrow but kept her palms against the table, reflecting calm, cool and collected. He grimaced. "Look . . . I get it." This surprised her. "We kind of rushed into this and there's things happening that you're just not ready to process. I live in the moment, you plan it out. This wasn't planned. It wasn't on your terms." Now she felt guilty and it reflected on her face. He hurried on, apologetic. "Not that I'm saying you're controlling its just . . . Think of it like magnets right? They attract but they're different. We're good together. It's just getting to see and understand that . . . I love you. I'm not taking that back. The longer I'm with you, the more I want to have you by my side for as long as you'll stay."

"Owen . . ."

"Just hear me out-" She moved and he met her kiss. She pulled back, hands on the side of his face. 

"Owen, I . . . I do love you . . ."

"You're just not IN love?"

"Oh. I'm hopelessly caught by you."

"Mmm . . . I like that."

"Do you?"

"Sooooo . . . Wanna have a quickie-?" She pulled back, grabbing the files and headed for the jeep. "Aw! Babe! I was-"

"You better drive fast. Bunaglow's pretty far from here." That was all the prompting he needed.

.o.

He was absolutely livid. His arms were crossed firmly over his chest and his scowl was prominent. The fact he hadn't said anything made the situation more tense. He was being informed by Barry that they were housing a new raptor. One of the Sorna raptors namely, to see if it could be trained and integrated into Blue's pack system.

"Owen, hear me out." Barry started and Owen pushed past the man. 

"No, the answer is no. We aren't having it here. I'm not exposing Blue to . . . to . . ." He shook his head, gesturing with a hand now. 

"It is not a fertile male. Sterile, Owen, one of the nest-tender neuters that are born at least once a generation," Barry spoke up, keeping pace with the irritated male. "You’re the one that found out that little secret from Sorna. Your last pack was very successful and they want to--"

"I know what they want. They act like we're a damned circus pony act! That's what that is! Like we're the lion tamers or some shit. I won't stand for it . . . And Blue won't like it." Owen stated and made another gesture towards the closed off pen attachment that housed the Sorna Raptor. Sure enough, Blue could be spotted hissing challengingly at the new Sorna raptor. 

"Give her time. You are her Alpha, if you accept him--" Barry tried again to make his point. 

"Pffft. Yeah. Right." Owen grumbled and Barry stepped in front of him. Giving him a look he reserved for Delta when he'd been her primary handler. It meant he wanted something and expected it to be done.

". . . Owen."

"Alright. Fine. I'll give him a chance . . ." Owen finally relented. Barry smiled and clapped him on the shoulder. 

"Good, good. Listen. I have to go finish sorting out the paperwork . . . You good here?" 

"Yeah. I'll finish up the last bit here," Owen stated dismissively and went to go look at the Sorna raptor. Something about it bugged him. Something he just couldn't put his finger on. He was giving a lazy yet observant glance back as the creature continued sunning itself. Yeah . . . He wasn't accepting that anytime soon. 

He moved to go back to talk to Blue. She liked to listen. The voice of her Alpha was reassuring. Grounded her without pack sisters. Maybe Owen was being hasty in his judgement towards the new raptor. He leaned against the metal gate, warmed from the sun before pushing off a bit. Blue's sharp gaze followed him as he headed around the paddock. She kept paced with her Alpha. A constant vigilance for danger. 

She sensed the change in her Alpha immediately. She could smell the sickness of mind. Her soft caw caught his attention and she whined, pressing against the wall that separated them. She wished to be with her Alpha. To run free with him. To cuddle as pack members should. Not use the odd head harnesses the other handlers used. 

Her Alpha knew. Knew he was safe. Knew there was no one around to judge them other than the Not-Pack who was basking in the sun. The sun was warm and felt nice. The breeze was cool, bringing with it sounds and smells from the main park. She still remembered it. She whined again, and then moved to the entrance that would allow Alpha in with her. 

Owen moved, making up his mind in an instance. Sure, Blue could kill him in a moment's span and he'd never be able to stop it. He entered the first gate then closed it. At least if somehow he did die, she wouldn't get loose on the island. 

She backed up from the inner gate, giving him space and time. Her Alpha needed to be in here. Needed to rid himself of the mind-sick that radiated from him. His fingers inched towards the button that would open the inner gate, just barely brushing over it before he hit the button release. The gate slowly rose and he watched Blue, who made no move towards him. 

She chittered softly, clearly wanting him to approach her. So he did. Barry would've had a heart attack. Anyone else would call him suicidal. He wasn't. It was only Blue- not that she was weak. She wouldn't hurt him. He slowly raised a hand towards her and she came forward, pressing against the hand and allowing him to stroke her. She entwined around him like a large cat, making happy noises at having Alpha with her again. She remembered how he'd been when they were little . . . When they were free to roam the islands after their Alpha. 

No more. They had grown up and been viewed as too dangerous. Never to Alpha. She adored her Alpha and playfully nipped at his jacket-vest like she had as a baby. This was good. 

Owen felt himself smiling as he allowed himself this luxury. He let his mind drift, recounting the events of the day. The Indominus Rex for one . . . She'd been lethal. Part Velociraptor and hell bent on killing everyone and everything. She hadn't killed for hunger, no . . . She'd killed simply because she could. Raptors did the same though. They killed not just from hunger. 

Not his raptors. They'd been different . . . Oddly attuned to his commands. He'd been selected for this . . . And then placed in charge of them all. They weren't exactly his. . . But now she was. Picard had seen to that. It was better than Hoskins had. Owen moved to sit down, back against the metal grating and Blue huffed, resting her head against his shoulder beside him. She was enjoying the sun as well. 

It was comforting and the soft _whuff_ of air against his hair as Blue nuzzled against his head. She was a constant reminder of just _why_ he did this. God it was so lonely in here. . . But it was comfortable and he was tired. And it was safe. His eyes drifted shut to the soft _whiffs_ of Blue's protection. She would protect her Alpha. 

_He could feel the intelligence rolling off the creature, hear the terrible quivering of its breath as it inhaled. . . Hunting for him. Quick thinking saved him. He knew it would search by scent-first. He cut the fuel line ,holding his breath as he was doused in flammable liquid. The strong pungent odor forced his gag reflex but he fought it keeping absolutely silent as she would utilize her hearing next. A cold sweat broke out as he saw her._

_He could count his heart beats in those tense seconds._

_She was incredible in a terrible dangerous way. His heart pounded in his chest and he knew he could die in this very moment. Death was an old friend. One he'd courted many times . . . Only one other situation had been this rough before._

_And the Indominus melted away as a darkness so terrible it had no apt description surrounded him. There was no up or down. No other sensations than the cold. No light. No sounds._

_He was trapped underwater, tangled in a line that hadn't been properly secured. . . And he had no knife. Salt water stung his nose and eyes. His reflexes were kicking in, lungs burning for air he couldn't get too._

_He was going to die here._

_They wouldn't find his body . . ._

_He'd drift out to sea. Rotting away under the water. The pressure was so great he knew his lungs would pop soon. It'd be a painful way to go. There was no way out of this and the inevitable delay wasn't worth it. He opened his mouth to get it over with-_

He came to with an odd pressure, forcing himself to take a huge gulp of air. He'd been holding his breath. He was coated in cool sweat and it took a few seconds to become reaccustomed to his surroundings. There was no dark crushing depth of salt water. He was on land. There was a hard metal gate digging into his back. The sun peeked out from behind a cloud, basking him and the raptor whose head rested on his lap with a new warmth. He took a shaky breath, bringing his hands up to rub his face. 

Blue chuffed softly, nudging at her Alpha. The bitter tang of fear tickled her nose and she sneezed at him. He chuckled and pressed a hand against her, not for her to move but to connect. She wiggled, turning to breath into his face . . . Her attempt to soothe her Alpha. It had the desired effects because he leaned into her, butting his head lightly against hers. 

"I'm good . . . " But she could scent the lie on him like a dark musk. She didn't like that for her Alpha. He pushed at her more firmly, an unspoken command to let him up and she scrambled away. Then she watched as he used the gate behind him to pull himself to his feet. She could detect the tremble he was masking and stepped forward to resume her position beside him, eyes alert for a physical threat. There was none, but she continued her vigilant stance. She would be ready.

Another shaky breath and Owen figured he was good for today. He should head back and check in on Claire. See how she was handling herself after the visit to the Indominus Rex paddock. 

Blue snorted, shaking her head and shuffling it into a full-body shake. Something she had always done as a chick, she repeated now, trying to help her Alpha settle back into his skin again. She nuzzled her head up under his free hand, pushing her head along his palm, comforting herself in a pseudo-stroke, hoping for more attention. But a better idea came to her, and she gently pushed her way between Owen and the gate.

He had to hold onto her, not the metal, for support. Her Alpha. Her leader. She was strong when he was weak. She was strong _now_. She could hold him steady, and her hands, clawed and taloned, carefully balled up to push up under his palms, with head drawn back and blood-sour breath purring over his face. Nose-to-nose. Beta to Alpha. Tilting head to one side marginally, she bobbed it and chirped, worry written in her lines, in the stiff set of her tail. She would help her Alpha. She had to. He was her reason for living. She didn’t have pack anymore, just Alpha.

She wasn’t complete, but she would learn to be.

So Blue rested the top of her head against Owen’s chest and keened an eerie moan.

Pack was gone. Alpha lived. Pack was gone.

Alpha lived.

Beta Blue would live.

She would be all the pack the Alpha needed.

.o.

Picard stood from his desk, rubbing at his face. There was so much to do. He had heard from Soundwave that Claire had suffered a setback, trying to speed-heal herself by visiting the enclosure. Two days later, she had visited the Tyrannosaurus rex enclosure, and the security feeds from that visit had him in shock. It had been three days since she had sanded down the rex, and Picard was no closer to finding available large predator handlers. He had found a possible Mosasaurus lead handler, and an interim handler to help with the Baryonyx. But nobody wanted the rex.

He really shouldn’t have been shocked. Ol’ Regina had been the terror of the original park, and old rumors didn’t die easily. Larry, pain in the ass that he was, had been very right about how amazing the first park had started out, with limited technology and older processes. But that didn’t limit the chaotic nature of any of the creatures that had been created.

Walking out of his office and waving off one of the assistants, he walked down to the cubicles where Claire currently held residence. Her old office remained vacant. He knocked on the cubicle wall for one of his first HR contacts. “Hi, Nicole. Do you have any new handler applicants?”

She sighed, rolling her eyes. “Yep. Seventeen for herbivores, four for carnivores. I’ll let you guess.”

“Hm. Baby dinosaurs for most of those seventeen, the last few for the Trikes. And all four carnivores for the Velociraptors.”

“On the money.”

“Cute. Email all of them and let them know that we can do a working interview over a weekend, but their preference of animal does not mean that there are positions open for working with that particular creature. Honestly, I want Owen to personally know any potential raptor handlers. If he wants them. How many handlers have applied since we closed?”

“Over three hundred.”

“How many have we hired?”

“From that first hundred-fifty, we have ten new herbivore handlers, and five carnivore handlers.” She rubbed at her face, smudging eyeliner. Pausing, she pulled her hand away and made a face at what she knew was ruined makeup. “Listen, we need to make some sort of hiring announcement to let people know that we’re not hiring for specific animals.”

“We did. It’s on the website, and they have to confirm that they’ve read the two sentences stating ‘we don’t guarantee you a spot with a specific animal’ in their native, fluent language. See how many people will come out for a weekend, and we’ll see what we can do from there.”

“Will do.”

“And if I see one more smug rich kid walking through those gates like he thinks he owns this place because Daddy is an Investor, I will have Jan personally frog-march his sorry ass out.”

“Bit sore about the kid getting into the rex paddock, eh?”

“I refuse to explain to Daddy how his precious son was trespassing and almost got eaten. I’ll let him view the security camera footage on his own.” Shaking his head, he leaned over the next wall. “Claire, how are you?”

Claire kept the smile off her face as she listened in, all while maintaining the type speed on a chart she was attempting to finish. Projected stats for construction. The usual busy-work. The mentions of Owen and his raptors were always an amusing topic. The boy who'd found himself in Regina's home was also a source of amusement- she had a terrible sense of humor as it was. 

"Good, Mr. Rowling. Yourself?" She questioned, fingers freezing where they were as she turned to grant him her attention. She was all business, poised and ready for the next set of instructions to act upon.

He rubbed at a temple, wishing that he could have some down time, but as it was, he was only getting two hours of recharge a night, trying to find the best ways to rebuild and recreate the park. Despite that, he was loving the challenge. “I’ll make it through. Do you have walking shoes? I need to pick your brain a bit and walking helps me think.”

Her face revealed mild concern but she saved her work on the computer regardless, logging off just as quickly. "As it were, these are my most comfortable pair." She replied, standing up. Indeed she was wearing a nicer pair of heels, comfortable on the feet. She secretly enjoyed the click of her heels on the floor, so business-like. Sharp. Determined. Much like herself. "My brain is all yours, sir."

Smiling, he nodded towards the door. They were close to the back paddocks, so they wouldn’t have to go too far from his alt-mode. Small things to be thankful for. Once they were outside, he shoved hands in his pockets and began. “I saw that there had been a wave of fresh handlers arrive to the island three years ago. Of those fifty handlers, only eight left before the . . . _incident_ , and the rest of those forty-two have either never left, already came back, or have notified us that they will be returning in the next two weeks. We just hired fifteen, and we still have a minimum of fifty more slots to fill to be back at full staffing levels. How did you handle the hiring process?”

"Well, for starters. . . We didn't have a _terrorist problem_ ," she replied, then continued. "This job isn't for everyone. Some people believe what we've done is monstrous. . . In a sense, they're very much correct. The Indominus Rex proved that. The release of the pteranodons didn't gain any brownie points. The world doesn't believe we can control our assets because we didn't _prevent_ that from occurring. . . People need incentive. They need reassurance. . . Also, we need to find the right people. That might involve background checks on people who haven't applied but may prove to be valuable to the park. We have hired that way before. Take Mr. Grady for example. He was hired through InGen, specifically for the velociraptors. He was approached, they gave him an offer and he accepted. We've done such in the past with other workers. Sometimes _bribery_ is how the market works." 

She'd have to ask Owen on the specific details of him being hired because she had a feeling there was more to the story between him and the deceased Hoskins than he let on. "And then sometimes, you just have to take what you're handed and make it work."

Background checks wouldn’t be that hard with the Cybertronians hacking through information to find out if these were reputable people. Was that ethical? Probably not. But he had noncombatants to keep safe.

Sighing, Picard pinched the bridge of his nose and looked down. This wasn’t a war. This wasn’t a battle. This was a struggle, yes, but it was manned mostly by civilians. He flagged that train of thought for code adjustment later on.

“Okay. So, let’s talk dinosaurs.” They were by the employee-only catwalk of Paddock Nine. “Nobody wants to be a tyrannosaurus handler. They think it’s not glamorous enough.” He began to walk up the stairs. “She’s had a constant handler overseeing her care since you first got her into the paddock in 2004 for the mid-2005 park opening. Current handlers have their hands full with helping their animals heal and settle before we can reopen.” He reached the top and looked around to see if Regina was in sight. It wasn’t feeding time, so she wasn’t.

"I see the problem," Claire spoke quietly, eyes scanning the enclosure for any sign of Regina. Not that she was there for her. She was here for Picard who needed someone to vent to about the park it seemed. She'd gone through similar struggles upon first opening the park. But they hadn't been this bad. She pressed her lips together in thought. What to do about Regina? She was coming along in her years and they didn't know what her projected lifespan would be. They'd need to look into replacing her as well. As much as the thought pained her. Nothing lasted forever. Maybe she could make some personal calls. There had to be someone they hadn't reached yet or a way to entice the older handlers into returning. 

Picard leaned against the back wall, crossing his arms over his chest. They were behind glass for this portion of the catwalk. As soon as he had seen that Regina had used the open catwalk as a headrest, he spoke with the architects about keeping that section open. They had adjusted their plans, and the repairs were now considered complete. The railing slid down on a simple pulley system, and the upper half was essentially a garage door. There was now ten feet of open catwalk for a handler to interact with the rex.

“I know you can see the problem. I’m more concerned with what solutions we can work on. We have to start thinking about new attractions, and I was thinking about reviving the dilophosaurus exhibit, and adding a baby rex. But nothing can go forward without us first addressing our current needs.” He gestured to the paddock. “I need to know how _you_ , Claire Dearing, would fix this problem.” 

She met his gaze, her expression and tone serious. "I'd do the work myself." That was the most efficient solution in her books anyways. If they couldn't hire someone to do the work, they could do the work themselves. Her body language clearly dared him to challenge her statement. A leader wasn't above the grunt work. A task didn't get delegated out simply because someone didn't want to do it. She'd done manual labor before when getting the park started . . . And Regina wasn't all that bad.

Picard gave her a long, assessing look. She really meant that. “Good. You’re hired.” He turned and walked towards the repaired section, pulling out a folded up sheaf of papers from his back pocket and gesturing with it. “This is your paperwork. Read it, amend what you feel is necessary, sign it, return it to me. Your responsibilities are listed out in clear language. If you have any questions, you know who to talk to.” He paused, a smile on his tired features. “Questions, Ms. Dearing?”

The comical expression of shock and surprise took a while to school off her face. She blinked a few times, her thought process visibly seen on her face before she adopted a more suited expression. 

"I don't know . . . What to say," she said and moved forward to take the packet of papers from him. Skimming through it as she spoke. "We'll still need to find more handlers and the possible addition of a new baby T-Rex might just be the incentive they need to come here . . ." God. Owen wasn't going to leave her alone about this when he found out. One of her eyebrows rose though as she considered Picard. 

"What makes you believe I'll be suitable for this job? I have no technical training in this regards."

“Because one of the oldest animals in the park decided that she liked you and wanted you to groom her. You may not have the technical training, but you have the personality that meshes well with her own.” Picard smiled at her. “You’re suitable because she feels that you’re worth her time. She tolerated other handlers for grooming purposes.” He knew she was listening, hiding.

Apex predators.

Glorious creatures.

“I want you to help her, Claire, because when Jan told me to watch the footage . . .” He shook his head. “Claire, you’re the only person on this island that I would trust with Regina’s care.” His voice softened. “Jan and I think that you need her just as much as she needs you.” 

Claire was silent and looked away from him. He was right. Just like Owen had been when he'd insisted they go visit Regina. She'd never had nightmares of Regina. The two _had_ always seemed to get along. She talked, the predator listened. That was how it went. 

"Very well," she said crisply. "I'll have these into you no later than tomorrow."

He nodded, and turned to go. “I’ll leave you two to talk out the details.” Pausing, he whispered, “And Claire?” Picard looked over his shoulder at her. “Thank you.” Trotting down the stairs, he left her.

Regina melted out of the foliage, tipping her head to one side curiously towards her human.

"So that's where you've been hiding," Claire murmured, ghost of a smile crossing her face. She knew Picard Rowling meant well and she _trusted_ him. He was a great person. She could see that he really wanted this to work and she wanted to help him. She placed a hand against the glass that separated the two and tipped her head to the side in regard. "What am I going to do with you, hm?"

“You could start by petting her!” Jan called up from where he had passed his husband with a kiss and a wink. Climbing the stairs, he moved cautiously, making sure that Regina could see his movements. “I don’t think we’ve actually met, Ms. Dearing. Janarious Azzara.” He sighed, keeping to the back of the catwalk. “Lor’ . . . she’s gorgeous. Prowler told me earlier today that he was plannin’ ta ask you about bein’ the Queen’s handler, so I figured I’d follow-up with ya if ya had any questions ’bout timetables, schedules, supplies, anythin’ ya need at all.”

Regina peered around her human to the shorter dark man. Harrumphing, she nudged at the glass again, then moved to where she had originally been able to get some grooming. 

She stared at the new bars, then looked back at Claire, then back at the bars again. Hello? Grooming time? Even in those ridiculous clothes, Fire-on-Clouds could still use her hands and scratch at the soft skin around her eyes.

Claire gave the newcomer a thorough once over. "You're the new head of security." There a silent question in it. The tone was off just a hair. The last head of security had really done a number on them and she wasn't going to allow that to happen to Owen again. 

She glanced over to where Regina waited and suppressed an eyeroll. Something she'd picked up from Owen. "If she makes you nervous, I'd leave." She commented going to activate the newly created entrance. She couldn't imagine any of the other handlers doing this without some fear. . . 

There was just something satisfying about knowing she was about to care for the top carnivore of the island. 

Jan grinned. “Naw. I helped install the doors yesterday. She was back and forth trying to figure out what we were doing. And yeah, I’m the new security head, here to clean up Hoskin’s shit and get InGen security back inta good shape.” Nope. No love lost there. “How’s she looking to you, Claire?”

As soon as she could, Regina had her head in and snuffling around at Claire like an excited puppy. She smelled the residue of human sex. Of course! Raptor Alpha was Fire-on-Cloud’s mate! They were good together. Would make good little ones together. Strong line to rule the land. Good. And she smelled sweet plant matter, artificial, and some food thing that was probably what she had eaten. No proper meat. They didn’t have the teeth for it. Oh well.

Turning her attention to the smaller human, Regina blinked. He wasn’t as interesting. There was something that smelled different about him. Not bad, just . . . different. Not prey, either. She would study him later. “Muoommffff.” Grooming time now, thanks.

Claire gave Regina a critical look over. "She's probably overdue for a thorough lookover by one of the vets. . . I'll feel better once that's out of the way. She seems fine. . . She gots some spots that need attention for now but should heal up with some care. . ." Claire reached out to brush a hand against Regina. "Mr. Grady showed me how to treat those yesterday." She gave him a look over shoulder that said she needed no commentary on Owen's behavior. 

They were a couple but in a working profession she referred to him by his last name. He _hated_ when she did it. 

“Owen still ain’t let me even say hi to him,” Jan replied, moving to pull out his phone and make a few reminders so that they could get the old girl up to date. “He’s worried about Blue and that Sorna raptor we brought in yesterday, an’ I get that, but I’m gettin’ annoyed. He’s gotta be one of my cornerstones of island security, ’cause he understands how the animals work. I haven’t met him at all, an’ that bothers me.” The man settled himself to watch the interaction between the woman and her animal. “Picard believes in him, and that’s normally enough for me, but not in this situation. I gotta know my people. Gotta be comfortable enough to drink a beer around ’em, talk smack, and enjoy off-shift shit.” He grinned. “Can’t be professional _all_ the time.”

". . . Mr. . . _Owen,_ has been through a lot," Claire said slowly. "He lost his entire pack minus one. . . Trust is a thing you have to earn from him. Also, he doesn't like anything involving paperwork or. . . Work in an official capacity." Claire talked as she groomed Regina slowly and carefully. "You want my advice? Show up to his area of work when he's there. . . Then he can't avoid you." 

She turned to give him a thoughtful expression. "I still have yet to form an opinion on you." It was a statement. 

He grinned, showing teeth that weren’t perfectly straight. “Well, I have the next two hours free for you, since we haven’t had a chance to sit and chat. Would you like me to see who’s open on Main Street after we’re done talking about this beauty here?” He indicated towards the rex, who was clearly trying to imitate puppy eyes.

Claire smiled, liking the charming individual regardless. But her opinion on him would affect how Owen viewed him, so she needed to come to her own conclusions on him. 

"Yeah, that'd be good." She told him, turning her attention back to Regina. "How's it going, girl? I getting everything?" The adoration could be heard in her voice, like she was handling a puppy and _not a giant tyrannosaurus-rex._

Jan smiled as the rex talked back. One of the security personnel walked up from the other side, saw the wall down, saw the woman that everyone knew on sight at the resort almost _snuggling_ the predator, and did the wise thing. He turned around and walked away. Nope. That was way above his pay grade. Not going near it.

Regina huffed and nosed at the white dress, getting dirt scuffed over the skirt. Turning, she looked down at her food bowl, then up at her human again. Almost food time. She turned and walked away to rest against some of the larger trees still standing. The food-handlers gave her treats if she waited patiently. Jan’s smile didn’t falter. “I love these creatures. And it always shocks me how intelligent they really are.”

"Carnivores had to be smart. How else would they catch their prey?" She was speaking matter of factly. ". . . As much as I adore her, there's an even greater predator out there. . . Spinosaurus from Isla Sorna." She glanced at Janarius as she moved to handle the affairs with Regina's meal. "That's one nasty creature. . . And it wasn't even engineered, it already existed." Yet, they'd gone ahead and made an Indominus Rex, believing it to be a safer choice. She'd found that curious but never questioned the labs. 

She hummed lightly to herself and then glanced at him. "I'm sure as security you're keeping up with InGen. . . And the goings of the park. . . You also want to be Owen's _friend_. . . What are you going to do about the potential for more raptors?" She looked away, schooling her face for professionalism. "I saw in the budget that there's plans for an extension of the raptor research area. . . You need raptors for that. . . And Owen isn't going to just accept _consolation prizes_ from Isla Sorna. Those raptors aren't. . ." Her voice broke and she went back to what she was doing. Ignoring where she'd been trying to take that conversation. She cared for Owen deeply. She also knew that Blue had killed InGen employees. Owen would be crushed if they had to terminate her. 

“They’re not his pack and they’re not his girls.” Jan nodded. “I get it. But we had to show to Masrani that we gave it one chance. I don’t expect the male to fit in. But we’ll be sitting down with Henry Wu ta talk about hatchin’ two new raptors ta make up for th’ two that did die.” He was rubbing his chin, thinking.

And then froze and cleared his throat. “That’s . . . um. Hm. Damn.”

She froze at that and blinked. Once. Twice. She slowly turned to look at Jan, expression frozen on her face as well. 

"He . . . lost . . . _three_ ," she said and then frowned suddenly. Doing the mental calculations and reviews from that night as Owen had followed her and her nephews to safety. He'd made sure they were safe. Blue had run off. . . Barry had been left on the island. They hadn't called Owen back. If one had lived. . . Well, one had been blasted by a launcher. One had been tossed into a grill furnace that had set off an explosion. . .and one had been tossed. . . Aside just like Blue. 

Her hand shook as she covered her mouth, eyes widening. "Which. . . One made it? Why hasn't Owen been _informed_?" She hissed at him defensive for Owen's sake. 

“Delta. Because we weren’t sure that she would make it.” He sighed, holding his hands up. “I’ll be pinning him at the paddock tomorrow to tell him and bring him to her. But right now, she’s coming down off of a lot of pain meds and sedatives, and hasn’t been very nice and hasn’t been something you want to see. She’s scary shit. And for Owen . . . I _know_ what it’s like to lose friends to a fight. I’m . . . I _was_ . . . black ops. I have counted my losses in names and faces. And only a few times have I experienced miracles.”

_~Sweetspark, what’s wrong? Is everything going okay with Claire?~_

_~I fucked up, Prowl. I forgot that she didn’t need to know about Delta. And I’m reminded of our losses. I should be better than this!~_

_~No, hush. You’re fine. It’s okay. She would have wanted to have been warned that he’d be distracted by his raptors. And when we’re off tonight, let’s remember our friends. Sideswipe shipped us some of his solar high-grade last week; I wanted to save it, but I feel that this will be a good symbolism to drink to their memory with energey created from a fresh start.~_

_~Yes. Thank you. I’m sorry for disturbing you.~_

_~You haven’t, and you’re my other half of my soul. I always want to make sure that you are doing well.~_

“I wish that I had more miracles like this, but I’m glad that we could save Delta. She’s a bitch, but she’s a good damn raptor.”

Claire closed her eyes, taking a deep breath in through her nose and slowly letting it out through her mouth. Right. No need to connect personal feelings to this. It was business. Strictly professional. Game-face back in place, professional mask on to hide any inward turmoil of emotions tucked away for later. 

"Right. That's good. Try not to go too hard on him," she said, arms loosely wrapped against her sides as she looked out to the paddock again. She took another calming breath. "I'm not going to warn him." Her eyes pegged him with a fierce gleam in them. "I'd say go easy on him, but that's me as a worried girlfriend. As a professional business woman, do what has to be done to make this as smooth a transition as possible. . . Oh, and I like hot tea." She informed him, dusting her hands off the best she could before frowning down at her sullied suit. "Eush girl. . . Think I needed a physical reminder?" Her voice was warm however.

“Did you want a non-uniform set of clothes?” Jan chuckled. He didn’t have anything to help her clean the dirt off of herself. “I’m thinking khaki pants tucked into some combat boots to hide the dirt, and a white shirt so that she can keep track of you.” He held his phone up. “Did you want me to order some Starbucks or would ya like to come over and I can make some of my own for you? Picard gets migraines and I like the ritual of making a good pot of tea. Chills me out and helps him.”

Thankfully, some of the smaller restaurants retained some staff and could produce food. Picard was footing all of the food bills until the park reopened as one way of saying “thank you” to everyone who stayed and were helping to rebuild.

"A non-uniform set of clothes would probably be better. . . I don't think she likes the uniforms," Claire commented dryly before smiling. "As tempting an offer as that may be, I do keep a busy schedule so Starbucks would be best." She watched Regina milling around before moving to close the shuttered door again. "Shall we?" She indicated leaving the area with a small sweep of her hand. 

He smiled and pulled the gates closed and nodded. “It’d be my pleasure. Are you going to be okay walking around with dirt on your skirt today? And I mean it about your non-uniform uniform; send me the bill and I’ll take care of it. Outfitting handlers is part of my expenses, but you already know about that.”

"Who knows, maybe then it'll show people I _actually_ do work," she murmured, eyes glittering in amusement. She spoke as they walked. "I'll run my sizes by you later in an email and we can designate a meet-up to get them. . . For now, a hot cup of tea and a discussion about your future plans involving Mr. Grady will suffice."

Jan held his hand out for the former asset manager to precede him back out to Main Street. “Yes, ma’am.”


End file.
